Coping with Saline Bag Shortage (The Emporia Gazette)

Clinical staff, purchasing managers seek creative workarounds

Hurricane Maria's devastation can still be felt in the shortage of saline IV bags across the U.S., and hospitals are adapting to this in the middle of flu season.

The hurricane forced Baxter Healthcare Products to cease production on its saline IV bags, which account for almost half of the U.S. market. So far, Newman Regional Health in Emporia, Kansas, has managed to stay afloat due to predictive buying techniques and relationships with multiple wholesalers, group purchasing organizations, and local partners.

"In the unlikely event that we were unable to get normal saline bags, we would start encouraging the intake of fluid by mouth and look at other methods of injection as well," the center's interim pharmacy director told The Emporia Gazette.

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